Meeting Mr. Mogul(23)

"Hey, sorry it took me awhile to get here. You can put me to work now," I  said with a tight smile as I walked out of the elevator. I sighed in  relief that it wasn't William who came out the door. She looked at me  for a second and then her eyes widened a little as she glanced down at  my clothes.   





 

"I'm so sorry for taking your time with your father. I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't have to."

"It's okay, Maggie. My dad was cool about it," I replied with a reassuring smile. "Are you going somewhere?"

"I'm grabbing some coffee and lunch for William and me. Do you want anything?"

"A chicken sandwich and caramel latte would be lovely," I answered  shyly. "Wait. Do you want me to get it for you?" I asked. I strongly  hoped she would say yes, so that I could stall the inevitable.

"No. I'm good. I need the time off anyway. I've been at it since six in  the morning. Just go inside and ask William what you need to do. I'll  see you later," she left as the elevator door opened.

Before I could say anything, the doors closed, leaving me with no choice  but to do what I hated the most: speaking with and facing Mr. Mogul.

Did I have the courage to walk in that door?

I didn't really have the time to mull over that, so I turned around and  knocked on his door. I stiffened for a second once I heard a reply from  the other side.





Fifteen





After letting out a huge, calming breath, I slowly opened the door. This  was my first time to enter his office. Once I got in, the first thing I  saw was a massive, clear glass wall behind him, which provided a  spectacular view of the whole city. I silently gasped at the sight,  which made him look up at my entrance.

His initial expression was anger, which then turned impassive in under a  minute. But I saw his eyes soften for a second before he sported his  poker face. He was the only person I knew who could change expressions  pretty quickly.

"What took you so long?" he asked in a commanding tone, the kind I was used to hear from him.

"I rode the bus. So, what do you want me to do here?" I asked as I  gestured around the room, slightly taken aback by the piles of papers in  front of him.

"Straight to the point, as usual," he mumbled softly to himself, but the  eerie silence in the room made it easier for me to hear him. "You can  take over Maggie's work until she gets back. You'll just recheck all the  paperwork done for the past month," he instructed and pointed to the  huge table on the right side of the room.

When I turned to look, I was startled at the mountain of boxes and the  files in them. The table looked a lot like the one in the boardroom,  complete with twelve chairs. My guess was it measured six feet long. On  the edge, near his dark mahogany desk, there was an open laptop. I  guessed that was where I would be working until Maggie comes back.

Without another word, I turned away from him and walked towards the  table. I could sense him stare at my back as I silently made my way to  the laptop. When I sat down, I glanced sideways in his direction to  check if my suspicions were correct. I managed to catch him swiftly  divert his attention back to his laptop. I mentally grinned at his  reaction.

For almost fifteen minutes, the only thing I could hear in the room was  our fingers tapping the keyboard. The sound was starting to drive me  insane until he opened his mouth.

"Why are you dressed like that? Were you with someone?"

His gaze was on the laptop as he asked me. I didn't answer him right away because I wanted him to face me first.

"Why do you ask?" I countered with a raised eyebrow when he finally looked at me.

"Well, because you are wearing that..." he scoffed, gesturing to my outfit.

To give him the impression I wasn't affected by his words, I simply went  back to work (barely managing to suppress a giggle) and calmly replied,  "I went on a date."

It was strangely silent in the room after I said those words. I wondered  why he became quiet, so I glanced at him to see that both of his  eyebrows were raised in surprise. Incidentally, that was also the first  time I had a good look at him since I arrived. He wasn't wearing his  usual corporate suit and tie. Instead, he wore a grey polo shirt with a  few buttons undone and denim jeans. For the first time, Mr. Mogul didn't  look much like a Mogul. He looked more like a supermodel who just came  from a photo shoot. His hair wasn't styled back like it usually was. It  was ruffled like he only got out of bed.   





 

"You were on a date? You outright refused me because you were on a  date?" His skeptical tone made me understand what he was thinking.

"Yes. I have a life outside of work, Mr. Maxwell. I need to make my man  happy or he'll find someone else," I replied. I wanted to slap myself  for keeping up with this lie.

"Then why are you here Ms. Peterson? If you feel strongly about making  your man happy, why did you choose to come to work today?" At this  moment, he turned my way to scrutinize me.

I didn't cower under his gaze and stared back just as intensely. "Well, I  didn't at first. My man convinced me to change my mind. He understood  that I have a boss who is very demanding of my time."

"Are you saying that it's my fault that you are here now?"

"No, I'm merely pointing out a fact. Why? Isn't it true?" I retorted.

He couldn't think of a response at first. It was only a few seconds  later that he asked another question, "The guy with you in the bar last  night, that's your boyfriend right?"

"Don't drag him into this, Mr. Maxwell. He is a decent guy. He has nothing to do with this," I told him sternly.

"Do you think I'm going to do anything to him once I find out who he is?"

I ignored his question and continued to type out reports. He asked a  second time, which I ignored as well. Then, I suddenly heard a chair  move and footsteps walking towards my direction. Before I could react to  the situation, he already had his hand on my chair, turning it to face  him. His six-foot and glorious body was towering over me as I remained  seated in my chair. I glanced up at him in shock.

"What the hell?"

"I've never been ignored in my life. You're seriously testing my temper," he said with his jaw clenched.

His actions made my heart beat faster than usual. But I sat there  immobile and kept my face as impassive as I could. "You were the one who  started asking unnecessary questions."

"God! I've never met a woman with a mouth like yours. You always have something to say, don't you?"

"Well, I was raised to be opinionated, Mr. Maxwell. When I have something to say, I'll say it without second thoughts."

"Why does it have to be you?" he softly asked to himself with a strained  breath. He let go of my chair by then. "Do you loathe me that much that  you have to tick me off every minute we are in the same room?"

Frustration was written all over his face and I began to feel sorry for  him. "I don't hate you, Mr. Maxwell. Maybe it seems that way, but I  think that's because we look at the world differently," I replied as  calmly as I could.

"Then what does it seem to you?" he earnestly asked.

"I think that we fight because we are afraid of each other," I  reluctantly admitted, my voice was almost inaudible so that he can  barely hear me, yet wishing he could.

"I agree that you're afraid of me. But what makes you think I'm afraid of you?" he asked, somewhat startled at my reply.

"It was obvious from your actions."

"What have I done to make you think that?"

"Well, when you visited me at my old place, you were very nosy after Ms.  Maxwell gave me a job. You were also keen on embarrassing me during  that meeting. Lastly, throughout the time I've worked here, you've made  my life a living hell," I pointed out, mentally squirming under his  watchful gaze.

He snorted at my reply. "You have a good memory, I'll give you that."

"Thank you," I managed to give him a small smile.

He closed his eyes for a second before he placed his right hand in his  pants pocket and ruffled his hair with the other. Then, he sighed and  opened his clear blue eyes. His mannerisms made my stomach knot and my  breath hitch.

"How about we start all over again?" he offered with a small smile,  which made my stomach tighten even more. Not sure how to reply, I just  gave him a curt nod.

"Sure. I can do that," I replied after clearing up my dry throat and regaining my scattered thoughts.

"Great. I would love that," he smiled a toothy grin. The effect, this  time, was my heart stopping for a second. "So, we're friends?" he asked  after a few seconds, offering me his hand to shake.   





 

I looked at him for a second, then to the hand he held out. I mentally  gulped at the options I had to weigh. Do I want to be friends with Mr.  Mogul? When I looked up at him again, his grin was still in place.

"Does this mean you won't be slaving me around to do your dirty work?" I  couldn't help but ask. I inwardly slapped myself for asking a stupid  question and letting my curiosity get the better of me.